Corzine, Forrester Agree on Drug Treatment

New York, NY —

Despite the bitter tome of the New Jersey gubernatorial campaign Republican Doug Forrester and Democrat Jon Corzine actually agree on some things. WNYC's Bob Hennelly has more.

REPORTER: New Jersey has the highest percentage of inmate incarceration for non-violent drug offenses in the country, costing more than $250 million annaully. Both men want to move away from the criminalization of drug abuse in favor of treatment.

FORRESTER: We got to be smart here. Substance abuse is something that needs to be dealt with in terms of treatment, in terms of education, not principaly in incarceration.

REPORTER: Both say the current approach has broken up families. Senator Corzine

CORZINE: We have common ground there. I have spoken out about this. The reality is we have far too many men, particularly of color, in the prisons mostly as a part of the evolution of the drug problems.

REPORTER: Other items on the common agenda: an elected State Auditor to ride herd on the state's multiple governments and authorities, and a homeland secuirty czar reporting directly to the new Governor--- whoever that is. For WNYC I am Bob Hennelly.